Heart
by Silverfail
Summary: Morty is diagnosed with a heart condition, but his optimism about life remains strong. Rick desperately tries to find a cure in secret to help his dying assistant, but will it prove to be too late?
1. Chapter 1

Morty lay awake in his bed, his clock reading 3:05 in the morning. It was his night off his adventures with Rick, but he was awoken by the nightmare he just witnessed.

Morty had been running at Rick's side, heart racing like there was no tomorrow. An alien was chasing them and was hot on their heels. Morty didn't know why, Rick probably committed a thievery, but this alien was angry and didn't seem to be stopping soon.

It wasn't until Morty and his grandfather were cornered that the alien stopped. Rick had muttered something Morty was unable to understand, but the alien's voice rang clearly.

"I wouldn't have chased you so much if I knew what the boy's heart looked like."

Morty stared at the alien in disbelief. "Wha-what do you mean by that?" I stuttered.

But the alien began to disapparate, and before Morty could see what Rick was doing, he jolted awake in his bedroom, his pulse ringing in his ears. It was 12 in the morning.

Since then, Morty was awake and stared at the dark room thinking about the words of the alien. His chest had been hurting for the past week or so, and sometimes he felt as if it fluttered in its rhythm. Perhaps his subconscious was trying to tell him something. Perhaps it's a sign that something was wrong with his heart. Worry made him start to panic.

He thought about telling his mother or father, but he feared worrying them or even worse, making his father say it's Rick's fault. He also considered telling Summer, and she'd probably press him to see the doctor, which would lead to his parents knowing whether by Summer telling them or Morty being pressured to let them know what's going on.

And then there's Rick. Morty considered Rick to be a random shot. He could do nothing, or he could try to find a cure himself. He could randomly let it slip in front of his parents, or he could tell him everything's fine.

Everything's not fine and Morty knew it, but if there's anyone he could take the risk with, it was Rick.

He pulled himself out of his bed and walked to Rick's bedroom. Fortunately the old man was awake.

"Out." He ordered.

"Rick I-I need to tell you something." Morty mumbled.

Hearing his voice, Rick spun around in the revolving chair he sat in.

"Jesus Morty, what are you doing up? Don't you hibernate or something when I don't take you to our adventures?"

Morty played with his fingers nervously before he finally admitted his worries. "Rick, I had a dream."

"A dream, that's all it was Morty. A dream" Rick swung back on the blueprints he was working on.

"No Rick, let me finish. In my dream, we were running from this alien monster thing and he said he wouldn't have chased us if he knew what my heart looked like."

Rick turned his attention back to his grandson, interest piping up in his eyes. "Go on," he pressed.

"Well I asked him what he meant but he disappeared and I woke up. My heart was beating very fast and it took a while for it to calm down."

"So it wasn't a dream, it was a nightmare," Rick concluded.

"No Rick! I-the alien said what my heart looked like, but he didn't say how it _felt_ like. Lately it's been feeling like it wants to explode. My chest hurts sometimes and my heart...well my heart has been feeling different."

"It's probably all the junk food you eat every day. From the diet you have, I'll be surprised you make it past 35."

"But what if it's my subconscious or something trying to tell me something is wrong. I need to know!"

"So why are you telling me this? Your parents are in the other room."

"Because, you're the only one I can trust right now. If it gets worse, I'll tell them, but right now I want to ask you to take me to the doctor's. Can you do that for me?"

"Wait, right now?"

Morty nodded, looking away in shame. Rick blinked, but he pushed himself off the chair and walked out of the room grumpily.

"Let me get my ship keys," he yawned.

Morty smiled, and before he knew it, he was in Rick's ship watching the city go by as they flew to the nearest clinic.

* * *

"Is there any cure for his condition?" Rick urged.

The doctor shook his head. "I can only prescribe him medications to help him out, but I'm afraid I can't help beyond that."

Rick looked down at his hands, regret unusually gripping at him.

"It's a good thing you brought him in now," the doctor reassured. "Any later and it would've gotten worse."

When Rick didn't reply, the doctor continued. "He will be fine, so long as he doesn't do anything strenuous of the heart and comes back for regular monitoring."

The doctor handed Rick some paperwork about Morty's treatment before sending him off to receive the pills prescribed to him. Morty was waiting outside and joined him on the walk across the hallway to the pharmacy.

"So they found out something was wrong with my heart huh?" he mused bitterly.

"Yeah," Rick answered curtly.

"So does this mean no more adventures?" Morty mewed.

Rick stopped in his tracks, surprising Morty as he crashed onto him.

"No kid, we're going on adventures, but we're going to take it easy from now on. You'll also tell me when your heart starts feeling funny, alright?"

Morty stared at his grandfather with an eyebrow raised. Rick noticed how out of character he was being and pushed out his familiar attitude he knew Morty loved.

"Fucking piece of shit burden," he grunted before he ruffled Morty's hair and walked away to Morty's familiar "Hey!"

 **A/N: Another ficccccccccccc**

 **I had this idea because personal reasons, but I chose Rick and Morty because it's fun and I like making them both suffer.**

 **Couple things about this fic: I don't know where it's going and most chapters are in Morty's not in first person point of view except for the last one for an ending I think you'll all enjoy!**

 **Being educated is busy, so if any of you decide to follow, expect irregular updates!**

 _ **Also, reviews keep Morty alive until the next update!**_


	2. Chapter 2

Months went by and Morty had kept his heart condition a secret from his parents and sister. For a while, Morty was fine with it. He'd go down to the clinic either with Rick or on his own every 2 weeks for a monitoring to see if everything is fine, and his pills would be refilled using Rick's money he lent as Morty continued lying about Rick being his legal guardian. All without his family knowing what has been going on.

But even with regular monitoring and medication, his heart condition progressively became worse over time. Not enough to hinder Morty's adventures or become significant in his life, but enough to give him a scare. Eventually, it gave him anxiety that took over his waking life, leading him to need to cover up his condition and heart problem. He had the feeling he needed to talk to someone about it outside of Rick's agreement.

He was not ready to reveal what happened to him to his parents, so he went with the last candidate standing, Summer.

The thought of it unnerved him, leading him to go through an endless cycle between about to tell and wuss out. Eventually he forgot all about his plan as he learned to manage his stress a little more and continued on with his daily life.

But even then he was not at peace. He noticed Summer changing her actions around him. She appeared friendlier when he was around, but at the corner of his eye, when he was not looking, she seemed suspicious. She eyed him with eyes of interest and approached him more often than she did before. She practically avoided him before, but now it was as if she followed him around the house. Morty would go in the kitchen and more often than not, Summer was there, doing nothing but staring at her phone.

Morty was beginning to suspect that perhaps Rick told her about his condition behind his back. He thought about confronting the old man in the garage, but he feared Summer would hear them in her own sleuthing.

It was one day, when their parents weren't home, that Morty walked into the kitchen, aiming to get some cookies and sure enough Summer was there leaning over the counter on her phone. When he entered, she looked up. "Oh hey Morty!" she greeted with a smile.

"H-hey Summer," Morty replied. "What are you doing in the kitchen leaning over the counter like that? Isn't the couch a bit more comfortable?"

"I had to charge my phone so I just stayed here."

Morty turned to the snack cabinet where he chocolate cookies are stored. Just as he was about to reach out, he heard Summer put down her phone and sigh.

"Hey Morty, can I talk to you for a sec?" she asked.

Immediately, Morty's insides froze up at the shock of Summer's question. Normally, important conversations start with that five-word question. " _Can I talk to you?"_ What a joke!

"Oh s-s-sure Summer. Whatever you want, shoot!" he stuttered nervously.

"Well, I was just wondering. Is there something troubling you lately?" she wondered.

So Rick never told her. Morty sighed in relief to himself that Rick stuck to his promise.

"N-no, wh-wh-why do you ask?" Morty couldn't help but stutter.

"Well, you've been seeming a little...off recently. You seem spooked, and sometimes I see you grabbing your chest as if you're having a heart attack or something. Is it your anxiety?"

Morty's heart began to beat rapidly now, and he reached up to grasp it. Summer stared at him in shock. "See? Like that!"

Morty looked away in shame and could not bring himself to look up at his sister.

"No, ev-everything is fine." he grumbled.

"No, everything's not fine. I can see it in your face, you're so worried!" Summer argued. She walked closer to her brother and put a hand on his shoulder. "Talk to me, please. What's wrong?"

"Summer, if I tell you what's been going on, do you promise you won't tell mom or dad?" Morty was surprised on how calm he sounded when he asked this. Summer nodded.

He reached his hand over his chest and sighed. "I...have a heart condition."

Summer's gaze turned from curious to shock in an instant. "What?" She inquired.

"Lately I've been feeling like my heart skips ya know and-and my chest hurts. I told Rick a few months ago, and he took me to the clinic for a screening."

"Morty, what? Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"I-I-I didn't want to cause panic! To you or our parents…" Guilt gripped Morty's conscious, but he continued on.

"It feels like it's been getting better. I've been getting medication behind our parents' back. Rick has been helping me!"

"Rick? Our grandpa?"

"Look I know it's hard to believe okay? I'm surprised too, but he hasn't said anything. And y-you're not going to either, right?"

For a moment, Summer paused as she stared at her brother. It wasn't until Morty demanded another "Right?" that she finally answered.

"Okay Morty, I won't tell them. For now. But if it gets worse you tell me. Otherwise I _will_ tell them. It's for your own good!"

"I can understand that," Morty murmured. "Thanks Summer, I owe you."

"You always do, little brother."

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks for reading! And remember. Reviews keep Summer from telling their parents.**


	3. Chapter 3

Morty followed his grandfather as he was led through a dark tunnel that seemed endless as they walked. Rick had taken him out in the middle of the night again, but this time he didn't give an explanation of the adventure they were having. He just boarded Morty into his ship and took off.

Morty asked no questions. Instead he followed silently in the best of his ability behind his grandfather, waiting for an explanation. He knew pressing Rick would make him respond with his usual snarky nature.

Finally they reached the end of the tunnel, and a bright light blinded Morty as he exited to see their area of arrival. He blinked as his eyes adjusted, and was surprised to see himself standing on a wide cliff looking out to a colorful world. Extraterrestrial plants were everywhere and water flowed smoothly across a grassy moor. The sun was barely going down but the stars were out and brighter than he had ever seen. Morty gasped and turned to look at his grandfather.

"What...what is this Rick?" He murmured.

"Welcome to Planet Z1," Rick exclaimed excitedly. He walked ahead to get a closer view from the cliff they were standing on.

"This is the place where I go to escape when the alcohol isn't cutting it for me. I thought that maybe we could look for some minerals for my science. I haven't explored the entire thing yet."

Morty walked along the edge of the cliff, gazing in wonder at the view. He held a strong look of awe in his face. "Yeah, I'd like that!" He said.

Rick led to a place covered by some bushes. He signaled to Morty and disappeared into them. From outside, Morty could hear Rick's call saying everything is alright. Morty followed in to discover stairs of rock, and he knew Rick had definitely been working on it to make it more accessible.

* * *

The stars were high and bright in the sky as Morty followed his grandfather back to his makeshift campsite. He carried a bag of diamonds he was still amazed to have found. Rick held on to his own bag full of a powder that he claimed would help his machines run longer without needing a constant change of a power source.

"Alright Morty, go ahead and put your bag here," Rick instructed. Morty did as he was instructed, and Rick disappeared into a nearby bush. "Come on Morty, I have one last thing to show you."

Curious, Morty followed. He was welcomed by a hidden trench of glowing diamonds. He gasped in amazement. Of all things he expected to see tonight, this was not one of them.

"These are what I call Moonstones, Morty," Rick explained.

"Wow Rick, I didn't know you like diamonds and stuff!" Morty exclaimed.

"I don't. These are very rare, very special minerals. I've collected them and stored them here for safekeeping. No one wants to check out a desolated planet Morty. It has nothing to offer. So I used that to my advantage an-and brought them here."

"I didn't expect this at all Rick. Why are you showing me these?"

"They are highly valuable and worth more than every person's kidneys sold together in the black market back on Earth. Now as you know, I don't h-have a lot of time left. I want _you_ to take on my job of protecting them, so you can sell them and have enough for y-you and your children, and then your grandchildren, and all other generations after that. Y-y-you're all set, Morty."

"Geez, that's awfully kind of you. B-but, w-what about Summer?" Morty asked anxiously, turning to gaze at Rick. Had his grandfather stored enough for her too?

"Relax Morty. There's enough for the both of you to last a lifetime. You can even share with your friends and you'll be f-financially stable. It's fullproof."

"Oh. Cool!"

Morty turned his attention back to the beautiful glowing pearly white surfaces emitted a gentle light. If the stars were not so close to this world, Morty thought, they'd surely offer a form of illumination.

As he stared at the gems, he thought about the financial stability Rick mentioned. He thought about how he could start a family and be able to pay for his children's college. They could even offer it to their own children. And then the next generation could follow after that. He thought about how he could share the earnings with Summer so he could never see her struggle to raise her own family.

He thought about the life he could have. The opportunities and promises these minerals offered. All of it laid right before his eyes. He found himself getting so excited, his heart felt like it was going to burst.

His heart skipped a beat, and he reached up to press on his chest as he let out a cough to release some pressure.

Rick turned his gaze from the gems to his grandson. "Hey, are you okay?" He asked.

Morty rubbed his chest. "Yeah, just got a little too excited there, but I'm fine."

"You taking your medications?"

"Mhm. Don't worry, I'm fine!" Morty smiled at him. Rick only raised a part of his brow, but said nothing as he turned his attention back to the stones.

"That's enough gazing. Time to hide them." He began to cover them up with nearby shrubs. It seemed to Morty as though he had done this before. They said nothing as they covered up their sacred stash and returned to their camp.

As they curled up in their sleeping bags beside the fire to end the night, Morty couldn't stop staring out to the direction of the diamonds. His chest hurt and felt like a pressure was sitting on him. He was sure he was fine, but he had lied to Rick. He had run out of medication several days earlier. He just hadn't felt a need to get more.

But he began to wonder. Was he going to be able to enjoy the rich earnings the diamonds had? Was he just prolonging the inevitable? Was he going to wake up in the morning?

With those sinking thoughts, Morty drifted into an uncomfortable sleep.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry it's a pretty short chapter. I've been busy haha! I just wanted to let you know Morty is alive and well.**

 **Reviews help Morty keep his diamonds!**


	4. Chapter 4

Morty sat around the house waiting wistfully for Rick's return. He shifted uncomfortably in a laying position as he grew restless. Rick had been gone for a few days on a trip he wouldn't share with him. He alerted Beth and Jerry, which Jerry took better than well, and took off. Morty was left behind with serious boredom since spring break started.

Beth noticed Morty looking miserable while she was doing her chores. "Morty honey," she called gently.

Morty removed his arm from his face and glanced over to his mother.

"Your grandpa will be back soon. While you wait, why don't you go outside and shoot some hoops or something. You never use the basketball anymore."

' _I wonder why, Mother.'_ Morty thought bitterly, alluding to his fragile heart.

"In fact, why don't you take Summer with you. You kids used to play all the time, remember?"

' _Yeah, that was before she got her phone.'_

Morty sat up and stretched. "I guess a little bit of sunlight would do me good," he murmured.

"That's the spirit Morty."

Morty thought about being outside by himself, but he knew Summer would be happy to keep him company now that she knows what ills him.

"I'll have to see if Summer wants to go." He said as he started for the upstairs. He did not wait for his mother's reply.

He knocked on his sister's door and heard a "go away" from inside. Morty decided to open the door anyways.

Morty found Summer sitting on her bed staring at her phone.

"Morty god damn it!" she hissed.

"Hey Summer," he greeted. "I just-I just wanted to see what you're up to."

"Oh you know, the usual. Talking to my friends." she muttered, annoyed.

"Oh well, y-you wanna go outside and, uhm, shoot some hoops or something?"

Summer put the phone down immediately, her face full of surprise. "You're asking _me_?" she asked.

"Yeah well, there's no one else to ask really. And I thought some sunlight would do us both good. Don't you get tired of always being on that phone?"

He didn't know why he expected a dismissive sigh from Summer, but she only put her phone in her pocket and sat up.

"Yeah I'm getting pretty bored anyways. Let's go!"

She got up and pushed past Morty out of her room and hurried downstairs without a warning. Morty followed as quickly as he could until they were both outside bouncing a basketball around the driveway. Summer had always been better than Morty. Her height gave her an advantage. But adventures with Rick made Morty get quick reflexes and find ways to score goals. In the end Summer still won, but Morty made more goals than he thought he would.

Summer called it a day when her stomach grumbled, signifying it was time for lunch.

"Race you inside!" she exclaimed as she threw the ball onto the lawn and trotted towards the front door. She was just at the doorway when she stopped to look back at a glaring Morty as he walked towards to doorstep.

"Haha, very funny." he muttered sarcastically and disappeared into the doorway. Summer followed just behind and shut the door behind her.

* * *

Jerry entered the house in his usual, obnoxious way and greeted the family loudly. No one answered. He sighed and headed to the living room where he spotted Morty scribbling down on a piece of paper.

"Hey son, what you up to?" Jerry mused.

"Just a little bit of homework," Morty remarked, not looking up.

"Ah spring break homework. It's good to see schools making students work even when it's their time off. In the real world there are not many chances you can get vacations."

He gave Morty a slight squeeze on the shoulder before heading on into the kitchen.

Spring break homework. What a joke.

Morty waited until his father was gone before pulling out a daily sheet he had to fill out so he can report it to his doctor. His worry worsened when he saw all the symptoms he had checked off.

Fatigue, check. Loss of breath, check. Nosebleeds, no check. Chest pain- wait nosebleeds? What are those doing in _this_ checklist? Anyways, check for chest pain. Faint but still there. Though the only thing that ever bothered Morty were the heart flutters for being too active. He can't even do cardio to make his heart stronger anymore.

Morty sat back and sighed. This was so stupid. Why did _he_ have to be the one diagnosed with a heart condition. He was 14 dammit!

He stood up and folded his checklist before heading towards the garage. Maybe Rick had something, _anything,_ that might help him just a little bit. Maybe he could find something that offered relief from the tightness in his chest or the vertigo that plagued him. Rick was always drunk, there has to be something that helps against faintness, right?

But as Morty was about to open the nearest box, the garage door loudly opened. Rick's ship pulled up just on the driveway. He got out, several empty alcohol bottles following behind him.

"Stupid beer bottles, now I gotta pick up the broken pieces and every other thing. I'd be lucky if a piece punctures one of Jerry's wheels." Morty heard his grandfather muttering to himself.

Rick glanced into the garage and spotted Morty.

"What are you doing in my lab?" he demanded. Morty backed away.

"Gee Rick, you're one for greetings," Morty reprimanded.

Rick glared at Morty as he walked in. He wore a satchel over his shoulder. "If you touched any of my stuff…" he began.

"Don't worry, I didn't mess with anything." Morty promised.

Rick held his gaze for another moment before relaxing and setting the satchel on the table.

"Look, Morty." he beckoned. Morty went over to investigate. To his surprise, he saw pounds of gems.

"W-what's that for, Rick?" He asked.

"These crystals are beneficial to my science, Morty. There are so many experiments I can do that I haven't done before. Look at them, Morty," he reached in and grabbed one from the bag. He was now smiling. "Aren't they pretty, Morty?"

"Yeah Rick, they look nice…"

"But there's only a limited supply here. Thankfully I found a nice gig that will offer more of these. I'll be able to do many more things, I'll practically be unstoppable!"

Rick was salivating in his excitement. Morty backed away cautiously.

"And y-you're gonna help me Morty!"

No surprise there.

"W-We're gonna get more of these, and the first thing I'll do is find a cure for that rotten heart of yours!"

Surprise pierced Morty, making his heart flutter.

"You really mean that, Rick?" He asked.

"Of course, Morty. Doctors won't do anything so someone has to, and that someone is going to be me!"

Hope and excitement flared up in Morty's chest. Maybe he can be saved after all!

The excitement made his stomach feel strange. He felt like he was going to vomit. But just as his muscles pushed up, he let out a small burp. Rick ended up staring at Morty for a moment or two before clapping him on his back.

"That was weak," he mused, slight disappointment in his voice.

Morty covered his mouth with his hands. Rick turned back to his bag, pulling out a small set of vials, each with colorful liquid in them.

"One more thing, Morty…" he started. "I've decided it's about time you get your own lab. It'll be a small one, but now you can work next to me as my assistant, mixing the formulas I ask you and learning how to be a scientist."

He pulled out a small table that was stored leaning on his cabinets. He set it up quickly and lined it up with a steel board for protection. A small box went on one of the corners so it can hold the precious liquid Rick had salvaged up over the years. It was a training set, but it was sure to keep Morty busy while he waited for Rick to make a breakthrough in his research.

Once Rick and finished setting up Morty's new lab equipment, he called Morty to investigate. Morty felt around his new desktop and organized tool box. It was smooth and shiny. It was probably new, Rick must've gotten it recently. He knew Morty's time to learn formulas had come. And now that he can help out despite his condition, he can finally he could feel like he was able to do something. Anything. He wasn't a total burden anymore.

"Woah Rick," he stammered. "I really...I-I don't know what to say...thank you!"

He was full of wonder and excitement. Rick just gazed at him proudly. For once, he felt a little spark of hope.

But as he reached out to begin his mixing training, his heart gave another flutter. One that lasted more than one second and left him with a strange feeling in his chest.

And just like that, his little spark of hope was shattered.

* * *

 **A/N: I'm mean, I know.**


	5. Chapter 5

"There has to be something you can do," Rick growled.

The doctor only shook his head. "The medications I prescribed do not seem to be working."

Rick gazed at the floor with a frown on his face. Morty seemed to be taking them. As the prescription instructed, 2 pills were gone by the end of each day. So why wasn't it slowing down the buildup in his heart?

"You got anything stronger?" Rick pressed. His patience was running.

"Mr. Sanchez, I don't believe you know the dangers a stronger medication can lead to."

"I don't care! I'll find the cure myself if I have to!"

"Mr. Sanchez-"

"Give me the recipe! I just need a place to start."

"I'm forbidden by law-"

Rick's patience snapped. He pulled out his ray gun from inside his cloak and pointed it at the man that has been helping his grandson for the past month. Pulling weapons against people who help, very usual for a Rick. It took a lot of willpower to not pull the trigger right then and there. Rick needed the doctor alive.

The doctor's eyes blazed, but he remained calm even in the face of imminent death. He drew up his hands in a surrendering position, but he remained defiant.

"I can call the cops right now for threatening a doctor, Mr. Sanchez." He murmured with ice in his voice.

"One motion in reach for the phone and you're toast." Rick boasted.

"I just need that recipe, then I'll pull away the gun and be on my merry way. And you won't tell anyone _or else._ "

The doctor remained the way he was for another moment, then blinked slowly.

"Threaten me how you must, Mr. Sanchez," he whispered. "I cannot let that fourteen year old die. I'm a doctor, I save lives despite my own."

Rick cocked his gun, his glare penetrating into the doctor's eyes as he reopened them.

"Remove your gun, Mr. Sanchez. I will give you the recipe under one condition."

"Go on," Rick snarled.

"You take the recipe and you leave; and do not come back. _Ever_. Not for a refill; not for a checkup, not for a screening. Nothing. Without a different legal parent or guardian, I'm afraid you have doomed your grandson."

The doctor's words were possibly colder than Antarctica, but his conditions were fair, Rick thought. He respected that. Rick removed his gun from the doctor's face and placed it back into his lab coat pocket. The doctor turned away in search for the recipe in the cabinets behind his desk.

"I hope you know I'm being too lenient on you pulling a gun on a doctor," he seethed as he searched. "You said you'll find the cure for him yourself. I expect you to fulfill that."

"Whatever," Rick dismissed. He folded his arms as he waited for the doctor to sort out his files.

Several awkward minutes passed of Rick staring while the doctor rummaged through his cabinet. Rick was about to snark when the doctor pulled out a manila folder and placed it onto the desk. In it was the file of Morty's prescription. From the initial diagnoses to every refill they had come by, all documented down in this stack of papers.

"You will find the recipe in here, under the paper that tells the details of each pill." The doctor explained.

Rick took the folder and looked through it. Sure enough, he found what he was looking for. He smiled passively at the doctor.

"I'll have to see what I can do," he said triumphantly.

"I'll have to see what you can do," the doctor retorted. "Now get the fuck out of my office."

Without another word, Rick stood up and left.

* * *

Morty stared at the folder that was placed on the table. "What do you have there?" he asked.

"None of your business Morty, now leave me alone." Rick growled.

Morty continued staring at the folder. Rick had not told him his plan; he wanted it to be a secret until he found the cure. He knew Morty would react badly if he was unable to get a refill, so he had to find the cure before he finished his bottle.

Rick yanked the folder from Morty's gaze and smacked him on the head with a whip of the wind.

"No peeking," he warned. Morty only stared curiously as Rick stored the folder in his locked cabinet.

"Hey Rick," Morty chirped. "Is there any reason why that folder is so secret?"

Annoyance was starting to prick. "Is there any reason why you can't shut up?"

"Well I…" Morty quivered. Whatever he was going to say, he couldn't finish it. Rick took a breath. Perhaps he was going too hard on the kid, but this isn't the first secret he has openly held in front of Morty. Why did his grandson have to be so nosy?

"Look, it's almost 12 am." Rick began. "Why don't you go to sleep. You have school tomorrow don't you? Go get some rest."

What he said probably shocked Morty more than if he had told him about his ordeal with the doctor. His curious gaze turned into absolute horror when Rick finished uttering those words. That gaze alone made Rick regret sending him to bed.

"Y-you...never told me to get some sleep before…n-n-not this early..." Morty stammered.

Trying to cover up this accidental care, Rick added as nonchalantly as possible, "Don't think too much about it. Just go to your room and get into bed and stay there."

Morty's gaze lingered for a second, before he yawned and started his way to his room. Whatever his thoughts were about being sent to his room, he didn't complain. Instead, as he was disappearing into the doorway, he turned back and thanked his grandpa Rick before shutting the door behind him, leaving Rick alone in the empty garage.

A moment's hesitation held Rick in a trance before he tore himself away and reopened his locked cabinet for the folder. He opened it, turned to the page listing the recipe ingredients, and began studying it. Most of these things were easily accessible, and those that weren't were easy to make. This was going to be easier than pie.

As he began working on his cure, in pills he had decided, his mind began to wander. He blindly mixed chemicals, following the instructions the files had given him, as he thought about all the things he had taught Morty and all the time spent with him running for errands and fetching valuable products in the name of science. How poorly Rick had treated his own grandson. This assistant didn't even ask for any of this, and yet he stuck by the old man even now when his heart is on the brink of stopping at any moment.

Rick felt a tinge of regret as he worked. No one knew this but he always felt more than he let on. Normally he dismissed these feelings as chemicals acting up, but this time he let the moods flow. It's about he learned his lesson anyways. From now on, if this cure works, he will treat his assistant better. Morty was growing of age anyways. He even got his own chemistry set. Who says he's not ready to begin his own adventures? Maybe even without his grandpa.

A capsule popped out of a machine. Rick quickly took it and placed it in an analytic container. A couple moments later and the screen read positive. Whatever Rick had done, he did it properly. He had found the cure for Morty.

"Aww shit dude, fuck yes," he whispered to himself. He set the machine to pop out more of these capsules, enough to replace the ones that he flushed down the toilet. "A month of popping these babies and he'll be as good as new!"

He set the container back where Morty had left it. By the time he was finished, it was 3 in the morning. He decided he could reward himself by going to bed.

* * *

 **A/N: Hospitals don't work like this!**


	6. Chapter 6

Morty flicked through tv channels out of sheer boredom. Once again, Rick was in the garage working on one of his projects. He had decided not to go out for whatever reason and never asked Morty to help mix certain chemicals, so Morty decided to idly spend some time switching through television channels until finally something could come up.

But suddenly, Morty heard the garage door open and he could only assume Rick had gotten bored and wanted to head out. He waited for Rick to burst in and drag him onto an adventure, but no one came in.

Curious on why Rick wasn't entering to pester him, Morty turned off the television and headed towards the garage. The garage door was open and there was a newcomer inside speaking with Rick. They were discussing something, and as Morty entered the room he heard the last bit of what they spoke about.

"...reward will be great, my friend!"

"Rick?" Morty called quietly. Rick turned to him.

"Morty! This is Sol, we've known each other for a few weeks but we've been getting on pretty well; Sol, this is Morty, my grandson!"

Almost immediately, Morty felt a strange feeling about Sol. His eyes looked diabolical. He had a wide, fake, smile plastered on him. He wore a large hat with ears pointing out through some holes, and a long grey scarf. His skin was pinkish, but apart from that he seemed almost human.

Morty approached cautiously, glaring at the strange creature.

"I was speaking to your grandfather about some wondrous news that I heard from one of my accomplices!" he said, in a calm excitement Morty could just tell was artificial.

"And it will probably end us dead." Morty deadpanned.

"Woah Morty!" Rick scolded quickly. He seemed shocked Morty would snipe at the guest and grabbed his grandson by the shoulder and pulled him back. "He's a guest here, why don't you go set up your station and start working on some chemicals...or something."

Rick pushed Morty back and quickly turned back to Sol. "So sorry about that. Where were we? Come, let's go somewhere more private."

Rick led Sol out of the garage and into the front yard. Morty fumbled around furiously. He couldn't place why but he couldn't trust Sol. Something about him made him feel strange...unsafe even. Whatever it was, he did not want Rick to take up on the alien's offer.

* * *

The sky began to turn pink and the sun began to set before Morty heard Rick's voice bidding farewell to Sol.

"Let's talk again," Rick insisted.

"Absolutely," Sol agreed. They shook hands. "I'll contact you within a few Earth days, then we'll discuss what our cut will be."

 _Great, they settled on the mission!_ Morty internalized.

"Oh, and keep your grandson in check. That wasn't a very polite greeting."

"I'll do that," Rick promised with a faint laugh in his voice.

Sol boarded a small shuttle and lifted off the ground in a few seconds. He aimed for the sky and shot off into the orange atmosphere.

Rick walked into the garage with a small grin on his face. As soon as he saw Morty, his smile dropped into a frown.

"What did you make while I was talking with him, huh?" he demanded, his voice with the usual cold disinterest.

Morty held up a vial with purple liquid in it. Rick took it to inspect what it held, but he merely shrugged and returned the glass to Morty.

"A detoxifier huh? What are you going to do with that?"

"Well I-I was hoping to use it on you in case you got a little too drunk...ya know. And-and I think it helps w-w-with...the liver?"

Rick looked unimpressed, but he nodded, surprisingly, in understanding. He turned to head towards the kitchen, but just as he took a step towards the door, he stopped.

"What happened back there? W-w-what was with that snapping?" he demanded angrily as he turned to look at Morty.

Morty was about to shrug when he decided to put his foot down.

"I don't trust him, Rick!" he yelled angrily. "I-I-I don't know what it is but this guy is no good!"

Rick stared at Morty for a little longer before turning back towards the door. "Relax Morty, it'll be fine. We're just going to get riggity-riggity rekt!"

He walked on into the kitchen and closed the door behind him. Morty was left alone.

Frustrated, Morty slammed his fist onto the table, much harder than he thought he would. Why was he so distrustful of someone he had never met before? Normally Morty rolled with the punches, but this time something was _gnawing_ at him. Even worse, Morty usually never got angry with anyone other than Rick, but why was he angry at himself this time? Not Sol, not Rick, but _Morty himself_.

The irrational hatred made his guts feel hot. His heart fluttered and he was forced to lean down and grasp at his chest for a few moments. The feeling passed, but when Morty looked around to see if anyone had seen that, he noticed not only was he alone with his condition, but he was truly alone with the feeling of an unexplained dread.

* * *

 **A/N: I am so sorry for the short chapter! And for any drop of quality. I just wanted to update to show that I am not finished yet! I've just been so busy but I _will_ finish it. I'm just debating on either extending the story to add some heartwarming moments or just getting on and finishing it...**


	7. Chapter 7

Morty stormed into the living room silently and sat on the couch to return to his television watching. By now, Summer already took a seat on the far side of the couch. She stared at her phone like usual and didn't look up when Morty threw himself down. But a few moments of him silently fuming as he switched channels made her take a glance at her stressed out brother.

"Grandpa Rick again?" she guessed.

Morty let out a frustrated growl. "You don't know the half of it." he said curtly.

Summer continued clicking on her phone for a few more moments while Morty watched a little bit of Ball Fondlers before she finally turned her head towards him and asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Morty stayed quiet for a few seconds before shutting off the television. "No, I'm good thanks." he murmured.

"Alright then." Summer concluded.

Morty stared at the blank television in front of him, his mind racing. Finally all he could do was sigh and stand up to head towards his room.

"I'll see you at dinner," he said to his sister as he walked away with his hands in his pockets.

"Morty wait!" he heard his sister say.

He turned to look at her, confusion lining his face. What did Summer want now?

"Whatever's troubling you...you know you can trust me to tell me, right?" She had turned around to face him while still sitting on the couch. Her face was popping out from behind the spine, somber curiosity on her expression.

Morty trusted Summer with his life, but he could never admit that outloud. She knew about his condition and she knew about his anxiety. That's enough for him. Besides, what else could she do?

"I know, Summer. Thank you. But I feel like this is something I have to deal with alone."

He fiddled with his shirt nervously when Summer gazed at him in sorrow.

"You don't have to, you know."

"It's okay really; I'm okay. Don't worry about me so much okay? I'll be fine!"

He hoped to god it was true.

He backed out of the living room and smiled at his sister, giving her a thumbs up. She gave a thumbs up back, but she did not look convinced that he was handling himself well.

* * *

Morty was unable to sleep that night due to the inability to get comfortable. He tossed and turned, flipped his pillow over, switched positions, masturbated, and read, but the clock said it was 2 in the morning and he was still unable to get to sleep.

It wasn't until 3 when he finally curled up in his favorite position that he was finally about to drift off. But without warning, Rick slammed the door open and turned on the lights. Morty jolted out of his bed with resentment boiling in his tummy.

"Morty come on I need to show you something," Rick mumbled and grabbed Morty from the foot and dragged him off to the garage.

 _Here we go again!_

Once in the garage, Morty faced Rick of his counter as Rick drew out the plan for the next couple of nights.

"Alright Morty get this, are you listening?" Rick demanded.

"Yeah I got you," Morty murmured bitterly. He was exhausted and just wanted to sleep.

"Alright here's the game plan. Sol said we need to collect a certain plant we can make some...uh questionable things out of. We have already discussed what we need to do. Sol is going to inspect the planet we are heading to before we go all teleporty over there."

"'Teleporty?'" Morty challenged his choice of words.

"Yes now pay attention. In a few days I will hear from Sol again. He will tell us whether the coast is clear. Now we will have to take my ship so we don't seem suspicious. I'll park somewhere and _then_ we'll teleport so we remain out of radar."

"I don't understand h-how is going to hel-" Morty was unable to finish his sentence when Rick reached over to shut his lips and shush him.

"Listen to me Morty," he warned. "We'll walk around, search for a plant, bring it home, you know, do all Rick and Morty things. It'll be just another mission for us."

Morty moved Rick's hand away from him. "I don't know Rick, I don't trust Sol. I feel like he's hiding something from us you know?"

"Sol knows what he's doing."

Irritation gnawed at Morty's belly. Why couldn't Rick see through Sol's weird stance?

"I don't think we should do it," Morty concluded.

A look of shock and anger glared from Rick's face. Morty swore he wanted to reach out and slap him, but Rick kept still. He seemed rooted in his place, but his voice now spoke with irritation.

"If you don't want to go, then so be it. I'll go alone. Don't you see? We _need_ this Morty!"

They didn't need anything, Morty thought. Rick's mind was made up. Whatever hope Morty had that Rick would change his mind vanished. Morty didn't trust Sol and who knows if Rick will truly be okay on his own. His grandfather wasn't getting any younger.

Morty breathed a sigh.

"Fine, I'll go with you." He surrendered. "But after this I ask for three missions off."

"Make that one," Rick suggested.

"Two."

"Deal."

* * *

"I can't believe you talked me into this," Morty grumbled as he trailed behind an exhausted Rick. His own feet hurt too. They had been at this for two days and there was no sign of any "medical" plant anywhere.

Rick turned to face Morty with an exhale of bitterness. "Like you could do better," he scolded. "All you do is whine and complain when things don't go smoothly. Well things never go smoothly do they, huh Morty?"

He returned to leading Morty through the thick wilderness. Two days, and they have had no luck. They have had almost no food and little water and both were exhausted to the point of dropping and not moving for a couple of days. They were a couple of dirty, smelly pioneers with no destination to get to. Unfortunately the sun was setting, and Rick's flashlight broke the first night they were there when Morty dropped it. Now, due to the darkness and absence of the moon, they were forced to camp the night instead of treading on.

Morty was glad when Rick signalled for a camp to be set up. They unpacked their luggage and set up their sleeping bags. A small campfire was set up to toast whatever food they had left.

"Say Rick," Morty began as he munched on a fish on a stick.

"Why don't you portal us home? I mean we can head back and reach some supplies and get back before you know it!"

"Yeah you think I hadn't thought of that before?" Rick growled. "My portal gun has no charge left! It only has enough for one trip which will be our emergency getaway. I forgot to charge it before we got here." He slapped his hand on his forehead. "How could I be so stupid."

Morty gazed sadly at his grandfather for a few moments before finishing his kabob. He was homesick. His chest had never felt the way it was feeling now. All he wanted was to be curled up in his bed safely away from the dangers this extraterrestrial forest held.

The two finished their food silently and headed off to bed. Rick put out the campfire and curled up in his bag. Morty was unable to sleep and stared at the distant stars so different from the skies he saw back home.

"Hey Rick?" he called quietly. A gruff noise indicated his grandfather had heard him.

"Is there an end to the universe?" Morty wondered.

"Of course, Morty." Rick's sleepy croak answered. "There's an end to everything."

"Have you ever been there?" Morty pressed.

"Oh yeah, plenty of times. They have a bunch of restaurants and a convenient gas station for your needs."

Morty detected strong sarcasm coming from Rick's tone, but he didn't mind it. He was just glad Rick was answering his questions for once. For the past two days he had pestered Rick with questions so much, Rick ended up calling him a ' _batterniskit_ ' before shutting him out and refusing to answer any more questions.

"Do you think I'll ever see it?" Morty continued.

Rick let out an exasperated sigh. "Morty go to sleep." He commanded.

"But will I ever see the end to the universe?"

No answer.

"Then I guess-"

"Morty, if you shut up then maybe I'll take you to the freaking edge of the universe! But for no, go to sleep! We have a big day tomorrow if we're going to continue our travels."

Morty stared at Rick for a few moments before settling down with his back facing Rick.

"I think I'll like that. Goodnight Rick."

Once again Rick didn't answer, but Morty thought it would be nice to pester Rick one more time:

"I said goodnight Grandpa Rick."

"Good. Night." came Rick's passive aggressive answer.

Morty had just closed his eyes for what felt like a few moments before he was jolted out of his sleeping bag and held at gunpoint by a mysterious figure, arms wrapped around his neck. He faced Rick, who was glaring angrily at their attacker. Dawn light just barely began glowing.

"Sol? What the hell are you-"

"You have exceeded my time limit, Rick. You have failed." Sol's cold voice answered Rick's angry one.

"Bring me the herb within the next day or your assistant gets it."

Morty felt himself being dragged away. He was thrown into the trunk of Sol's spacecraft. He was calling Rick's name when the door was slammed onto his face. All he could see was darkness.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey wat's the haps my friends?**


	8. Chapter 8 PREVIEW

Rick threw open his portal and transcended to his garage. He quickly set his portal to the side and made a quick mental note to charge it as quickly as he could. Meanwhile, he rushed from one side of the garage to another, gathering equipment that will help in the rescue of his grandson.

 _How could I have been so stupid?_ He asked himself. Over and over, he cursed himself for not keeping his guard up and finding Sol suspicious of such a short time limit.

 _It must have been a trick_ , he worked out as he continued scrambling through the house for items. _Sol wanted something...but what?_

 _What did he want?_

 _ **What?**_

Once he had packed up enough materials, he poked around his portal gun in attempt to charge it quickly. The mediocre job would be risky, but right now, what Rick needed most was the save Morty.

He set the coordinates to his ship. Wherever he needed to go, he'd get there by ship.

 _Screw Sol,_ he continued cursing. _Whatever he wanted, he's not getting it._

He jumped through the portal, hoping to everything that he'd come out in one piece. Warm air hit him, but as he stepped out, every limb seemed intact. None of his organs moved, and all his bones were in place. Success.

He climbed onto his ship and set out in search of Sol.

* * *

 **A/N: To anyone who is still waiting for this story, I am working on it. Recent life events have kept me from doing anything that I've been meaning to do so a deep apology to anyone who is still waiting for the conclusion. It's coming!**

 **I will delete this chapter when the chapter is completed, but I do not know how long it will take, so I decided to drop a little preview. Just for the wait, I'll try to make it as epic as I can!**

 **Thank you for your patience. Have a great one.**


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